The Columbia County Library will host Atlanta author and editor Colleen Oakley on Jan. 11, at 3 p.m. Oakley has said that she decided to become a journalist after hearing her mother criticize television newscasters for their aggressive interview tactics.

Oakley’s debut novel, Before I Go, was named one of People Magazine’s best new books in their January, 2015 issue.

GROVETOWN — A month into his new job as Grovetown’s public safety director, Gary Jones is wasting little time putting policies and programs in place to address growing pains the Columbia County town is experiencing with the addition of thousands of cyberdefense jobs at Fort Gordon.

Jones said that he has already assigned three police officers to direct traffic during morning and afternoon rush hours at Grovetown Middle School and downtown where East Robinson Avenue meets Kath­erine Street.

The fight to build the first hospital in Columbia County will continue well into next year and possibly years beyond, despite a state decision to award the license to Georgia Regents Medical Center. University and Doctors hospitals have filed notices to contest the decision.

Both University and Doctors were denied the required certificate of need in a joint decision by the Georgia Department of Community Health.

Chances are that slice (or two) of pecan pie you enjoyed over the Christmas holidays contained Georgia grown pecans. There’s also a good chance those pecans passed through Harlem along the way to the pie shell and your stomach.

Tracy-Luckey Co. which has been in business since 1937, still produces millions of pounds of the pecans that are baked into holiday pies and cookies, or incorporated into various other recipes in dishes and desserts throughout the land.

The following accounts were taken from Columbia County Sheriff’s Office incident reports:

Family robbed Christmas Eve

A Grovetown man called authorities on Christmas Eve after discovering someone had broken into his home and stolen gifts.

The 31-year-old man said someone kicked in the front door of his home between 8:30 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. The burglar stole a 1911 CAP .45-caliber handgun, a Playstation 4, an electric guitar and all of the family’s Christmas gifts from under the Christmas tree.